On December 11, Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian participated in the Kazakh-Iranian Business Forum in Astana.
Tokayev reported that last year, bilateral trade exceeded $340 million.
“We agreed to significantly increase trade turnover between our countries, with the goal of reaching $1 billion initially and $2 billion in the next stage. We have the necessary potential to achieve this. In this context, the initiative to open a Kazakh Trade House in Tehran is particularly significant. This will enable us to systematically supply domestic products to the Iranian market. Our investment ties are strengthening. Over the past 20 years, Iran has invested over $226 million in the Kazakh economy. Currently, more than 350 enterprises established by the Iranian business community are successfully operating in our country,” said Tokayev.
Tokayev continued by saying that Kazakhstan is one of the key transport and logistics hubs in Eurasia. “Currently, 85% of cargo turnover between China and Europe passes through our country. We pay particular attention to further expanding our transit potential, and therefore consider Iran an important partner in this area. Kazakhstan is ready to work together to develop port terminals, improve logistics, and increase transit cargo volumes. We plan to build a transport and logistics terminal at the Shahid Rajaee seaport. This will pave the way for the direct delivery of Kazakh products to global markets. We are interested in establishing connections between the ports of Aktau and Kuryk and the Iranian ports of Amirabad and Anzali. We also have plans to establish partnerships with the seaports of Bandar Abbas and Chabahar. It is important for us to develop multimodal corridors connecting Central Asia with the Persian Gulf, and the Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railway plays a special role in this. Freight traffic along this route could double by 2030,” Tokayev emphasized.
Tokayev placed particular emphasis on preserving the Caspian Sea and its ecosystem.
“Today, the fate of the Caspian Sea is becoming one of the most pressing issues requiring urgent action. Sea level decline is already having a serious impact on both the environment and the economy of the region. A solution to this common problem is only possible with the consolidated efforts of all five [littoral] states. It is important to actively engage international organizations and financial institutions in this process. To preserve the Caspian Sea’s water resources, it is necessary to adopt an interstate program and begin implementing joint measures,” said the President of Kazakhstan.
